G2 New Jersey Devils @ Carolina Hurricanes: Backs against the wall

The Devils were outclassed in the series opener and will now be without two important defensemen. How will they respond?

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The New Jersey Devils will look to even the series and steal home ice with a Game 2 win in Carolina.

Here are a few notes to get you set for the action:

Vintage Dougie

Luke Hughes tied for the team lead in 5v5 shot contributions and led all defensemen with 11 in Game 1. Not far behind was Dougie Hamilton with nine of his own.

Hughes didn’t take the morning skate and has already been ruled out by head coach Sheldon Keefe. Without Hughes, Hamilton becomes the team’s 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th best option for creating offense from the backend.

That’s evident looking only at the Game 1 numbers. Johnathan Kovacevic was the closest blueliner to Hughes and Hamilton in shot contributions. He had four.

Simply put, the Devils aren’t going to get much (any?) volume from their backend when it comes to creating shots – except from Hamilton.

The Devils absolutely need Hamilton to be at his best and contribute meaningfully in this game. They need clean breakouts, they need one-timers coming downhill in the offensive zone, and they need him to quarterback the top power play effectively.

If he struggles or fails to provide those things, it’s going to be extremely difficult for the Devils to compete.

He has to bring his A-game.

Seek shelter